Albuquerque, NM. Despite the postponement of the only public hearing in the country on controversial changes to the Mexican gray wolf reintroduction program, wolf advocates from six states will rally in Albuquerque on October 4th for a citizens’ hearing to promote Mexican wolf recovery. The Save the Lobo events and citizens’ hearing are open to the public.

Wolf activists say that many of the proposed management changes are counter to the recommendations of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) own recovery team, and will actually make recovery more difficult.

"The content of these proposals is critical to the survival and recovery of Mexican wolves, which are still vulnerable to extinction in the wild. The hearing may be postponed, but it’s vital that activists come together and keep up the drum beat that our lobos deserve a recovery plan and new rules that support actual science-based recovery, not a smoke and mirrors attempt to look busy while actually preventing recovery” said David R. Parsons, Wildlife Biologist, and former coordinator of the FWS's Mexican wolf recovery program. Parsons is now with The Rewilding Institute, an Albuquerque-based conservation think tank.

Parsons and scientists assigned to the Mexican Wolf Recovery Team maintain that releases from captivity must be resumed and Mexican wolves must be allowed to live in additional areas with good habitat to secure their recovery. The federal proposal would allow release of captive-bred wolves into the Gila National Forest in New Mexico and allow wolves to roam outside of current boundaries. But in a sop to politics, the proposal would stop wolves from reaching important suitable habitats north of Interstate 40 and south of Interstate 10 by ordering their capture and return to the prescribed area. Also harmful, the proposal would open up new loopholes for legal killing of wolves.

The Save the Lobo event begins at 3:30 with information tables, light refreshments, and wolf related art activities for children. Defenders of Wildlife will provide training from 4:00 - 4:45 p.m. to teach people to be a more effective advocate for wolves. At 5:00 pm the Save the Lobo Rally will begin, followed by a citizens’ hearing with opportunities to be heard speaking for wolf recovery. All of the events are free and open to the public.

While all the organizations participating in mexicanwolves.org share the common goal of recovering the Mexican gray wolf, individual groups can, and sometimes do, differ in their approaches to specific issues.